--- Greg Potts <Greg@POTTSFAMILY.CA> wrote:
> Hi Mark,
>
> "What your email is telling me is that the original
> parts are much
> higher quality than most of what's available in the
> aftermarket.

Actually, I think what Mark is getting at is that
often the work done is not done correctly and that
leads to early failure.

I know, I have done this myself. I had front bearings
that were OK. I decided that it would be a good idea
to put new ones in at 150,000 miles.
I thought that sounded like a lot of miles on original
bearings, but still, there was nothing wrong.

I was used to so many years of bugs and busses
bearings going bad- and none of my air-cooled VW's
ever got that kind of mileage on bearings.

After I replaced the bearings, I had nothing but
trouble for a year. I went through 120.00 worth of
bearingsor two new sets.
Somehow I just could'nt adjust them like the
air-cooleds, or I lost my touch, or there was just
something I was doing wrong , not using special
tools,. etc.
Finally, after going to a shop that did'nt fix it ,  I
went to a junkyard and put a pair of low mileage front
spindles and discs and did nothing to the bearings-
that was 7 years ago-still working fine.
Maybe I should grease them- but I'm afraid to touch
them. That reminds me, that's the one thing I won't
do.

Time call a shop .

Robert

1982 Westfalia

  It is
> a good idea to carry a spare, but it's not always a
> good idea to
> replace a part before it breaks... you might be
> replacing it with an
> inferior product.
>
> There are a lot of parts out there that I **Know**
> this to be
> verified... the original shifter bushings on an
> aircooled bus last much
> longer than the replacements available. Same thing
> applies to a lot of
> seals and cables, and most of what comes from
> Brazil.
>
> As they say, Your Milage May Vary.
>
>
> Happy trails,
>
> Greg Potts
> Toronto, Ontario, Canada
>
> 1973/74/79 Westfakia Conversion **Bob the Tomato**
> LY3H
> 1977 Sunroof Automatic L63H/L90D
> http://www.pottsfamily.ca/westfakia
> http://www.busesofthecorn.com
>
>
> On 12-Mar-05, at 10:04 PM, mark drillock wrote:
>
> > I'm not sure he needed a new engine in the first
> place. Why was it
> > done?
> > The compression readings he posted in Aug 2002
> seemed to be what
> > prompted the whole engine saga. Given how far and
> how often Larry ended
> > up limping around the country on crippled rebuilt
> motors it certainly
> > seems possible to me that he might  have been
> better off sticking with
> > the original until it died, assuming it even did.
> If he was willing to
> > limp the high dollar motors around so often, why
> not just limp the
> > original until it died?
> >
> > There were other breakdowns that occurred all too
> soon after he had
> > replaced parts. Wheel bearings come to mind. Why
> did he get all new
> > ones? Then a couple thousand  miles later he has a
> failure. Was there
> > even a failure to start with or was the full
> replacement another
> > preemptive effort gone bad?
> >
> > Over many years on this and other VW van lists
> there have been stories
> > from people who spent great sums on their Vanagon
> getting ready for a
> > big trip. The Caravana trip list comes to mind.
> These folks were going
> > to the tip of South America and back in a group of
> VW vans. Some
> > members
> > replaced a lot of expensive things before the trip
> and still had those
> > same things break down early on. Perhaps there is
> something to be
> > learned from this.
> >
> > The syrup was good, Ben, thanks!
> >
> > Mark
> >
> >
> > Benny boy wrote:
> >
> >> """As for Larry, he made what seems like a
> classic mistake to me. Some
> >> people figure that you can preemptively replace
> enough stuff as an
> >> insurance policy to ensure  a more trouble free
> trip. Time and again
> >> this has proven to be a waste of time and money.
> Fix what is truly
> >> broken and save the rest of the money until you
> really need to spend
> >> it."""
> >>
> >> I don't agree Mark... when you leave for a 1 to 2
> years trip, you do
> >> as much
> >> as you can so you won't loose to much time in the
> shop.... that is
> >> 60k miles
> >> trip! not your everyday weekend trip.
> >>
> >> He did one thing wrong, and he knows about it!
> Wrong choice of
> >> engine....but
> >> look now, he as an broken AVP after 9k miles...
> >>
> >> Life IS A risk!
> >>
> >> Cheers, Ben
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >
> >
>

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